Community Association

The consumer protection division of the Maryland attorney general's office is trying to mediate a dispute between the developer of an Anne Arundel County retirement community and a group of its residents.About 300 of the 1,100 residents of Heritage Harbour, near South River, have asked the attorney general's office to look intoalleged wrongdoing by the community's developer, U.S. Home Corp.Among other things, residents claim U.S. Home Corp. sold to other developers land that had been set aside as community common space.

Regarding the recent debate over dirt bikes, as president of my community association I can assure you that while the riders' antics may seem "cool" to their peers, the rest of us see them as noisy and a danger to motorists ("Don't penalize city kids for riding dirt bikes," April 25). I personally have had two frightening near collisions with these lawbreakers in recent years. That is why I would welcome legislation making it mandatory for retailers who sell dirt bikes to prominently display signs informing potential buyers that it is illegal to drive dirt bikes inside the city limits.

Wilde Lake Community Association is sponsoring a second session of Internet workshops at Bryant Woods Neighborhood Center, 10449 Green Mount Circle."Creating an Internet Homepage" will be offered from 2 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. Saturday and March 2 and 9.The cost is $15 per class or $40 for the series.Registration is required.Information: 730-3987.

On April 2, a hearing was held at the Baltimore City Zoning Board to determine whether the zoning authority would grant conditional use for a gas station to a new, mega-Royal Farms store. This would operate 24/7 with at least 12 gas pumps at the intersection of Harford, Glenmore, Grindon and Old Harford Roads in Hamilton.  All Northeast community associations voted against this development with hundreds of outraged citizens turning out to voice their opposition at meetings over the course of many months.  This development is suitable for an interstate or busy highway, not a residential neighborhood of old homes which has been struggling, slowly but with some tenuous success, to revive itself as a viable community with small, locally owned businesses lining Harford Road, including an independent gas station and several great restaurants.  The intersection is a traffic nightmare, well-known to the city, which is now going to spend $400,000 of taxpayer money to create a new traffic pattern on behalf of the privately owned Royal Farms.

For more than 30 years, Elkridge Community Association has lobbied on behalf of more than 400 homeowners on such issues as a controversial solid-waste trash transfer station and a single ZIP code for the area.That could all change -- not the purpose, but the name.Members are considering changing the group's name because the area the association represents has grown to include parts of Dorsey, Ellicott City, Hanover and Jessup.Members weighed in with their votes for a new name during the group's meeting Thursday night, according to Daniel Vaccaro, an association board member who distributed a survey.

BILL WAFF, a member of the Howard County Board of Appeals, is retiring as president of the Savage Community Association. He has held that post, he says, more often than not for the past 10 years. But after his appointment in June to the Board of Appeals, "You try to avoid conflict of interest," he said. The Board of Appeals makes decisions regarding land use. The Waffs moved to Savage from Mississippi, where Bill was in the Coast Guard, in 1976. They had lived in Columbia and Bowie, and knew and liked the area.

This summer, St. John's Lane Community Association sponsored its first gardening contest, complete with judges, prizes, and various categories.Doris Guercio, Ruth Hutchinson and Ellen Oppenheimer toured the sprawling area in June, coming up with three winners and three honorable mentions.Winner of the best sunny garden was Beverly Lang of 3600 block Meadowvale Drive; best shady garden, Bob and Joan Coberly of 4200 block Club Court; and best all-around yard, Marie and Jennings Brinsfield of 3800 block Spring Meadow Drive.

For the past four weeks -- unlike the previous four years -- Muriel Carter has not made a daily trek to the Glen Burnie Improvement Association building to conduct business."

A Rodgers Forge couple came out on top yesterday in a legal battle hinging on what might seem a simple question: Where is the "front" of their house? The decision yesterday by the Baltimore County Board of Appeals marked the second time that Brigid and Dave Wilder have prevailed in a challenge to their plans to enlarge their kitchen and add a porch to their end-of-group rowhouse - a project that a community association has said would threaten the architectural and aesthetic integrity of the neighborhood.

Pt Sjk hs bght hm n Svrn Prk.Do you want to buy a vowel, guess the puzzle or spin? Can't guess? Here's a few hints: Local girl. Former "Miss Georgetown." May be moving back home. Vanna White.Oops. May have given it away. Well, anyway, the rumors floating around are true: Pat Sajak has bought a home in Severna Park.Rightthere on Bluff Point. You know, that exclusive community on the Severn River. Big brick homes. Only access through a gate. Security cameras all over the place.Rumors abound.

After a heated meeting, members of the Baltimore City Democratic Central Committee have selected the director of the Oliver Community Association to replace Del. Hattie Harrison, who was the longest-serving member of the House of Delegates.  Committee members voted Friday to appoint Nina Harper to fill the open seat in the 45th District, which includes much of northeast and east Baltimore. She did not respond to a call seeking comment Monday. Scherod C. Barnes, of the central committee, said the full committee would likely approve Harper's nomination Wednesday, sending the pick to Gov. Martin O'Malley for final approval.

Not so long ago, a dilapidated house stood on the corner of Jenifer Avenue and 30th Street in Baltimore's Montebello community, a magnet for drug users and dealers. But now the house has been torn down, and a mural is planned that will fill the space "with color and joy," said Natalya Brusilovsky, the healthy neighborhoods coordinator for the Coldstream-Homestead-Montebello Community Corp., a nonprofit community association. The mural is the brainchild of Gabrielle Elkaim, a 29-year-old Mount Vernon resident who works for the federal government and is taking a seminar through a program called Landmark Education that requires her to "create a project that inspires," she said.

The lawyer for a Catonsville community association tried unsuccessfully again Thursday to delay a Baltimore County hearing on a proposed medical office building, saying state prosecutors' requests for information on the project have raised questions about the county's development process. Attorney J. Carroll Holzer, representing the Kenwood Gardens Condominium Association, called the situation unprecedented as the administrative hearing opened. His clients oppose construction of the Southwest Physicians Pavilion planned by Whalen Properties.

A Baltimore County administrative law judge turned down Monday a request from a community association to postpone a hearing on a proposed medical office building in Catonsville that has drawn scrutiny from state investigators. Last week, the Office of the State Prosecutor subpoenaed eight county agencies for information about the Southwest Physicians Pavilion, a proposed project by Whalen Properties on a 2.5-acre site next to the Baltimore Beltway. The prosecutor's office has not commented on the reason for the subpoenas.

There are nearly 1,200 homes in the Riverview and Ryerson Circle communities. We are permitted one Baltimore County sponsored clean-up annually. The community association receives hundreds of calls with questions during the year, asking when the next one is scheduled and offering to help. Yet when July 21 arrived, plenty of excuses were given. This area is three quarters of a mile from Riverview Elementary School. Fifteen hundred fliers were hand delivered to every home in both communities, in addition to all the merchants, for distribution to their customers.

On March 19, the Greater Baltimore Highlands Community Association met for its monthly meeting. State Sen. Nancy Jacobs, a Republican who represents District 34 that includes Harford and Cecil counties, was the guest speaker. Jacobs, a West Virginia native who is the only woman running for the 2nd Congressional District seat now held by U.S. Rep.C.A. Dutch Ruppersberger, answered questions about taxes, gas prices and the economy. She urged everyone to vote in the April 3 primary election.

Regarding the recent debate over dirt bikes, as president of my community association I can assure you that while the riders' antics may seem "cool" to their peers, the rest of us see them as noisy and a danger to motorists ("Don't penalize city kids for riding dirt bikes," April 25). I personally have had two frightening near collisions with these lawbreakers in recent years. That is why I would welcome legislation making it mandatory for retailers who sell dirt bikes to prominently display signs informing potential buyers that it is illegal to drive dirt bikes inside the city limits.

Forty-three Baltimore community leaders were honored yesterday for working to improve the places where they live -- from organizing baseball teams for children to forming food banks for the needy.The 43 received plaques from state Sen. Ralph M. Hughes, a Democrat whose 40th District includes Park Heights, Waverly and Charles Village, in a ceremony at Coppin State College. Hughes hopes to hold the ceremony annually."Senator Hughes believes there are many individuals in Baltimore who have not given up on this city," Hughes' wife, Mary, acting as mistress of ceremonies, wrote in a statement.

Here is a list of forums that will be hosting candidtates for the Board of Education: When: March 14, 6 p.m., Where: Starflight Enterprises, 6801 Douglas Legum Drive, Elkridge Sponsor: Thurgood Marshall Democratic Club of Howard County When: March 18, 1:45 p.m. Where: Howard High School, 8700 Old Annapolis Road, Ellicott City Sponsor: Chinese Language School of Columbia When: March 21, 7 p.m. Where: Patuxent Room,...

Elkridge residents are turning to lawmakers from Howard County for help fighting the potential placement of a CSX rail transfer facility in their community, arguing that lower costs should not be the only factor considered. The site in Elkridge is the cheapest of four potential locations, and the only one estimated to stay within the original $150 million cost estimate — which CSX and the state had agreed to split equally. But Elkridge residents say the project would devastate the property values of the 353 homes that lie within a quarter-mile of the facility.